[en] Epidermal cysts are common benign subcutaneous lesions that occur in or on the skin. It is not very difficult to diagnose subcutaneous epidermal cysts using ultrasound imaging because they exhibit typical sonographic features. However, the differential diagnosis can be confused when epidermal cysts are found in unusual sites. The authors report a case involving a 4-year-old girl who presented with an intramuscular epidermal cyst in the gluteus maximus muscle. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed characteristic internal features of the epidermal cyst, despite being in an uncommon site, and was very useful in the preoperative diagnosis

[en] Absence of the azygos vein is a very rare variant of venous tributary arrangement which has been reported only in few cases so far. We hereby introduce the chest radiographic and computed tomographic findings of the congenital absence of the azygos vein with bilateral superior vena cava, incidentally detected during a follow-up for rectal cancer. The hemiazygos vein is drained into persistent left superior vena cava via left superior intercostal vein, so called the 'aortic nipple'.

[en] In this review, we present computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings of various calvarial lesions on the basis of their imaging patterns and list the differential diagnoses of the lesions. We retrospectively reviewed 256 cases of calvarial lesion (122 malignant neoplasms, 115 benign neoplasms, and 19 non-neoplastic lesions) seen in our institutions, and classified them into six categories based on the following imaging features: generalized skull thickening, focal skull thickening, generalized skull thinning, focal skull thinning, single lytic lesion, and multiple lytic lesions. Although bony lesions of the calvarium are easily identified on CT, bone marrow lesions are better visualized on MRI including diffusion-weighted imaging or fat-suppressed T2-weighted imaging. Careful interpretation of calvarial lesions based on pattern recognition can effectively narrow a range of possible diagnoses

[en] We compared the efficacy and safety of two ethanol ablation techniques-ethanol aspiration and ethanol retention-for benign cystic thyroid nodules. From October 2008 to September 2013, 113 patients who were treated using the ethanol aspiration technique (February 2008 to December 2010) and 108 patients who were treated using the ethanol retention technique (January 2011 to September 2013) were enrolled (male:female ratio, 53:168; mean age, 48.1 years; range, 18 to 80 years). The patient sample had 94 cystic and 127 predominantly cystic thyroid nodules. The volume reduction ratio (VRR) at the last follow-up, improvements in symptoms and cosmetic scores, vascularity, pain, and major complications were evaluated and compared between the ethanol aspiration group and ethanol retention group. We also performed a subgroup analysis according to the proportion of the solid component, in which VRR, symptom and cosmetic scores, and therapeutic success were compared. No statistically significant difference in VRR was found between the ethanol retention group and the ethanol aspiration group (83.2%±32.8% vs. 86.1%±18.4%, P=0.416) while patients who underwent the retention technique were more likely to experience pain after treatment (P=0.001). VRR, symptom and cosmetic scores, and therapeutic success did not significantly differ between techniques in either group in the subgroup analysis. The ethanol aspiration technique may be preferable to the ethanol retention technique for treating benign cystic and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules, because a comparable VRR can be

[en] To evaluate the increased value of using coronal reformation of a transverse computed tomography (CT) scan for detecting adnexal torsion. This study included 106 woman suspected of having adnexal torsion who underwent CT with coronal reformations and subsequent surgical exploration. Two readers independently recorded the CT findings, such as the thickening of a fallopian tube, twisting of the adnexal pedicle, eccentric smooth wall thickening of the torsed adnexal mass, eccentric septal thickening of the torsed adnexal mass, eccentric poor enhancement of the torsed adnexal mass, uterine deviation to the twisted side, ascites or infiltration of pelvic fat, and the overall impression of adnexal torsion with a transverse scan alone or combined with coronal reformation and a transverse scan. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUCs), sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value were used to compare diagnostic performance. Fifty-two patients were confirmed to have adnexal torsion. The addition of coronal reformations to the transverse scan improved AUCs for readers 1 and 2 from 0.74 and 0.75 to 0.92 and 0.87, respectively, for detecting adnexal torsion (p < 0.001 and p = 0.004, respectively). Sensitivity of CT for detecting twisting of the adnexal pedicle increased significantly for readers 1 and 2 from 0.27 and 0.29 with a transverse scan alone to 0.79 and 0.77 with a combined coronal reformation and a transverse scan, respectively (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively). Use of a coronal reformation with transverse CT images improves detection of adnexal torsion